July 8, 2005 Versacio, Haines Letter

Ocean County Politics, Barnaget Light

Ocean County Politics .com

Letter Published In The Observer And Toms River Times

Ted Versacio

Government Change Leader Versacio Says He's "Not Surprised That Virginia Haines, Who Wasted $100,000 On Travel Junkets When She Was Lottery Director, Is Now Trying To Pin The Tax Increase On Brush"

Award-Winning TR Civic Leader Is "Appalled That The New Money-Wasting, Patronage-Dispensing Government Is Worse Than The One It Replaced"

River City: To The Editor:

The Traveler: Haines Snickers At Taxpayers After Looting DMUA Reserves

Somehow I am not surprised that Virginia Haines, the former lottery director who spent more than $100,000 of the taxpayers money on useless national and international travel junkets, has criticized Mayor Paul Brush for wasting money, hiring too many political hacks and raising taxes.

GOP Council A Lot More
To Blame Than Brush

But my recollection is the seven member Republican Council, including two pay-to-play lawyers, is a lot more to blame than Brush for breaking all of their campaign commitments and handing the taxpayers a world class tax increase and the huge spending increase that is a township record.

Process Corrupted By Fiure's Useless Job That "Stinks"

Michael Fiure Mocks Taxpayers Who Foot The Bill For Job That "Stinks"

The process of establishing a cost effective new government was corrupted even before the council was sworn in when Councilman-elect Michael Fiure, an attorney, was handed a useless $90,000 “job” in the county parks department two weeks before the new year. The Asbury Park Press said in an editorial that Fiure's job "stinks."

Gilmore's $90,000 Code Appointment Also Stinks

GOP Chairman Gilmore Made Suckers Out Of 50,000 Dover Taxpayers

The other shoe dropped a few minutes after he was sworn in when Councilman Fiure made a motion to award Republican County Chairman George Gilmore a $90,000 contract to make “changes” in the administrative code to allow the council, at huge cost, to give contracts to a total of 50 deserving lawyers, engineers and political cronies.

Maruca A Bureaucratic Gilmore Drone

Maruca: Bureaucratic Drone In Gilmore's Seaside Heights Political And Financial Empire

The motion was seconded by Councilwoman Maria Maruca, a paid full time bureaucratic drone in Gilmore’s political empire in Seaside Heights, and passed unanimously with Council President Gregory McGuckin, Gilmore’s political fundraising collaborator and another pay-to-play attorney, also voting in the affirmative.

Huge Waste Of Public Funds By Haines
At The DMUA: What A Phoney!

The enormous waste of public funds that followed is, as they say, history.

And, don’t forget, Mrs. Haines is the former Dover Utilities Authority Chairman who bears a big share of the responsibility for the DMUA’s current $5.3 million deficit problem, in the red for a total of $14 million in four years.

Haines And The GOP Council Have Wasted
More Money Than Brush Can Even Dream Of

Mayor Brush is a big spender, but Mrs. Haines and the Republican council and the Republican chairman have wasted more taxpayers money in a very short time than Mayor Brush can even dream of.

Ted Versacio - Dover Township

Editor's Note: Mr. Versacio collected thousands of signatures in 2002 to change the government in Dover Township.

After the petitions were filed, Mr. Versacio campaigned to get the public to vote YES on the government change referendum.

He spent at least 400 hours on this project and he expected the local government would improve dramatically when the new mayor and council took office.

Like many other taxpayers, Mr. Versacio has been bitterly disappointed with the huge spending and tax increases, and patronage plays of the new government.

This article prepared for publication July 8, 2005.

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